Chapter 1

【Promotion】

I've started a new work titled "Betrayed by My Comrades, I Reincarnate as a Demon King. I Build the Strongest Nation in the Demon World and Assemble an Army of the Strongest Demons to Invade the Territory of My Comrades on Earth. Well, Traitors, Just Wait and See!"

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"It's been quite a while, hasn't it?"

I, Marius Farma, sighed.

Tomorrow is my niece Mel's wedding.

She is my sister's daughter, and she is twenty years old this year.

To a forty-three-year-old bachelor like me, she was as dear as my own daughter.

Mel was always very close to me since she was a child.

"Do you not have a nice lady, Uncle? When I grow up, I'll marry you!"

She used to say that every time we met when she was a child.

"That little girl is finally going to marry someone else. What a bittersweet feeling..."

I couldn't help but smile.

I looked at the wedding gift I had bought in the neighboring town today.

I am a farmer with no significant income, over forty years old.

Living in a small village, I don't have many opportunities to meet people.

I've almost given up on marriage.

All the more, I want my niece to be happy...

While thinking about such things, I saw the village in the distance.

"What...!?"

I stood rooted to the spot.

The village was on fire.

The entire village was engulfed in red flames, and black smoke was rising from everywhere.

What is this?

What's happening?

Is this real?

No, it must be a bad dream!

But the smell of burning that reached my nose, the heat of the flames...

This is undoubtedly reality, thrust upon me.

"Damn it!"

I started running, shouting.

"Mel! Alma! Treme!"

I called out the names of my niece and my sister's family, running desperately.

Are they safe!?

Please, please be safe!

It's too cruel to have this happen the day before the wedding!

I ran, praying.

When I entered the village, everything was engulfed in flames.

Bodies of villagers were scattered everywhere.

The overwhelming smell of blood made me feel sick.

I almost vomited as I continued to run.

Then, I found a woman.

"Ah..."

The sound that escaped my lips was more like a raspy breath.

Mel was lying in a pool of blood, completely lifeless.

Her clothes were torn to shreds, and her body was covered in fresh blood.

Her once lovely face was twisted with fear, despair, shame, and pain.

Next to her were my sister Alma and her husband Treme, also lifeless.

Like Mel, their bodies were covered in fresh blood and riddled with wounds, gruesome corpses.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

I screamed and sobbed on the spot.

"Mel! Alma! Treme! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

I just kept screaming, overwhelmed by grief, anger, and despair.

"Hey, there's still a survivor!"

"He's crying! Hahaha!"

"Sad about the villagers dying? We killed them all, every last one of them!"

A dozen or so soldiers appeared, laughing crudely.

The emblem of a dragon and a sword on their black armor.

They were regular soldiers of the Gaiaus Empire.

Our enemies, the Milansia Kingdom, with whom we have been at war for a hundred years.

Recently, there had been a lull, but has the war started again?

"What are you standing there for!?"

One of them lunged at me with a spear.

"Ah...!?"

My right thigh was pierced, and I let out a cry of pain.

I fell to the ground, unable to bear the pain.

"What do we do, kill him outright?"

"Wouldn't it be more fun to torture him to death?"

The imperial soldiers laughed, their faces showing only the joy of violence.

Could they be the ones who killed my niece and my sister's family?

"Damn it..."

Am I going to be killed here too?

Frustration and anger welled up inside me.

I want the power to kill all of them.

"What are you staring at, you bastard!?"

Another imperial soldier thrust his spear at me.

"Ah... Gah...!"

This time, a searing pain shot through my chest.

My heart was pierced.

I perceived it calmly, even though it was strange.

My consciousness began to fade.

My vision went dark.

My body grew cold.

Is this... death...?

When I came to, I was standing in a grassland.

"Where... am I?"

Not in the village.

A landscape I had never seen before.

"Am I... dead?"

"Yes. But, you could also say you are not."

Suddenly, a figure appeared before me.

It was glowing so brightly that I couldn't make out its form.

"What... do you mean...?"

"You were not supposed to die. However, it seems that due to a mistake... your fate was rewritten to be killed in this village."

The figure explained.

"A mistake by the entity that governs life and death—what you might call a 'god' in simpler terms."

A mistake by God?

If I die because of that, it's not fair.

No, the other villagers were also killed by sudden, unjust violence.

In terms of an unjust death, I'm no different from the villagers.

"First, I would like to apologize. I am sorry."

The figure bowed its head.

"Even if you apologize, I'm already dead, right?"

"No, I will invalidate your death as my responsibility."

"Invalidate?"

"Essentially, it means bringing you back to life."

I was taken aback by the figure's words.

Bring me back to life...!?

"Furthermore, as an apology, I will grant you a special ability. A sort of reincarnation bonus."

"Special ability...?"

This is getting strange.

"What is your wish? I will grant you a 'power' that aligns with it."

"My wish—"

A boiling emotion surged up from the depths of my heart.

It's—decided.

"I want to kill them!"

I shouted.

A cry that burst forth from the depths of my heart.

"I want to avenge Mel and my sister's family! I want to kill them all! Every last one of them!"

"Then, I will grant you an invincible ability. An EX skill of the 'Light' attribute."

The figure declared.

"The name of this skill is—"

It announced solemnly.

"The [1000x Experience Bonus]"

Before I knew it, I was back in the original place.

"Am I... alive...?"

I had no injuries.

Did I come back to life?

['The caster's death has been canceled, recalculating fate coefficient']

['In progress']

['Completed']

['Conditions for the activation of the power of [Light] have been met']

['The caster has been granted the EX skill [1000x Experience Bonus]']

['The skill effect will be applied from the next battle']

['Defeated 12 imperial soldiers, gained 36 experience points']

['Due to the skill effect, gained 36,000 experience points']

['Total experience points increased from 0 to 36,000']

['The caster's level increased from 1 to 11']

['400 experience points needed to reach the next level']

Suddenly, glowing text appeared in mid-air.

"Hey, you better run faster or you'll die!"

"Come on, run, run!"

The Gaiaus imperial soldiers were shooting arrows at me.

They seemed to be still enthusiastic about hunting me.

I ran around, dodging the arrows.

"Hmm...?"

I finally noticed something strange.

I could easily dodge the arrows.

My speed had increased incredibly—probably about ten times faster than usual!

Moreover, I wasn't even out of breath.

"What... is this old man!?"

The soldiers seemed to be getting anxious.

Actually, I was the most surprised.

My body felt light.

Too light.

Moreover, the soldiers' movements seemed abnormally slow.

No, the opposite.

My dynamic vision and reaction speed had increased incredibly.

I moved at super speed, dodging the soldiers' attacks.

However, just dodging wouldn't solve anything.

I wanted to attack, but I had no weapon.

The enemy soldiers were wearing armor, so punches and kicks wouldn't work.

"—Wait a minute. Punches and kicks, huh?"

With my enhanced physical abilities, even a simple punch or kick could deal significant damage, even to someone in armor, right?

['Melee skills are available']

[Rapid Blow]... Rank 1 skill. A punch attack. Target: one enemy. Damage: small.

[Power Knuckle]... Rank 2 skill. A powerful punch with full body weight. Target: three enemies. Damage: medium.

[Sonic Fist]... Rank 3 skill. A punch after a supersonic maneuver. Target: five enemies. Damage: large.

As if reading my mind, the text appeared in the air again.

"Rapid Blow!"

I activated the skill.

My fists were enveloped in a white glow of energy.

I punched the soldier in front of me repeatedly.

Thanks to the glowing energy, my fists didn't hurt at all when I hit the iron armor.

"Ugh..."

The soldier was thrown back and hit the ground hard.

He didn't move, apparently having hit his head.

Did he... die?

It was my first time killing someone.

"I... killed him."

I didn't feel any guilt.

Just a small part of my boiling desire for revenge was satisfied.

At the same time, my heart burned even hotter.

I will avenge them.

The image of my smiling niece, the image of my happy sister and her family, flashed in my mind.

(I hope you can see this, Mel, Alma, Treme... I will avenge your grievances.)

I now have the power to do so.

"Alright, imperial soldiers! I will kill every last one of you!"

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